Viva Las Vegas

Karyn and I had a fabu time in fabulous Las Vegas, a weird and wonderful place where tourists can be the main attraction. We flew in on Monday, November 10th and left on Friday, November 14th.

We stayed at the New York New York Hotel and Casino, which had a roller coaster that we rode twice. We ate a few of our meals there, and they were all really good. We hit up the 2-for-1 buffet at the Excalibur on the first day - my first - and only - buffet in Vegas.

The strip at night is a sight to behold. We marveled at the re-creations of architecture and masterpieces from around the world. The fountains at the Bellagio were beautiful, and so was the hotel itself. We went to two Cirque du Soleil shows, "O" and "Beetles Love" and they were both totally awesome.

We got a bit of shopping in at Fashion Show Mall, and we lounged by the pool in at the hot tubs at our hotel.

And then there was the day we went to the Grand Canyon. We rented a PT cruiser that we thought was going to break down on us and put on 1000 km in 10 hours to the Grand Canyon and back. But it was worth it - who knows when we'll make it back?

Our last day was one of the best because it was the hottest. They actually opened the pool and checked out and sunbathed the afternoon away. One final dinner and we were on our way to the airport.

For more pictures, check out my Picasa site: http://picasaweb.google.com/jantastic.photos

Home is where the art is.

Danielle's art, that is, but you can't see it yet because we haven't hung our pictures yet. A few photos of the exterior for your viewing pleasure. I really do like the new place. The backyard is one of my favorite parts. It's cosy and leafy and quiet. The seller left the patio furniture behind, fortunately for us. Photos of the interior to come when I finally hang the pictures (which I hear can take months).

We're working on homework. I'm taking Linguistics 101 this fall, and D is probably studying Egyptian or Greek or some other dead language. 

Delux Burger Bar

My hope for this new blog is to provide occasional restaurant/foodie reviews for my favorite haunts and new finds in Edmonton. It's part of my "rediscovering Edmonton" phase that I'm going through, since I've become a permanent resident of this city that I can't seem to leave. 

Delux Burger Bar (not really a bar, actually a family restaurant) located in central-west Edmonton, is a favorite spot of Kristi and mine. It's small and chic, the service is pretty good and the food is delish. The menu is small and the entrees could be described as upscale carnival fare. I had the Delux Burger ( 8 oz Angus infused with blue cheese and all the fixin's) with a half order of sweet potato fries. Kristi had the same and Steph got the special Cajun chicken burger. The portions were huge and everything was tasty, but we were sad that they didn't have a dj spinning like they've had in the past. Vegetarians and health nuts beware - few options here for you. 

Desserts include fancy mini donuts and banana splits, and you can finish off the evening with free cotton candy - see the small tower in the photo.

The company was great, we had an ex-roommate reunion that has been due for two years.

Fashion week in Edmonton

EFW (Edmonton Fashion Week) is a relatively new thing in Edmonton, and it included the Marvel College graduating class fashion show.  A very cool girl that I know named Tabea had a line in the show and so Laura invited us to come and I brought along Vaness because she likes this stuff. Tabea's designs were unique because this was the first time an MC grad designed a maternity line for their show. We loved it! We also really want to go shopping now.

We were also inspired by a few pieces designed with tartan by an alumni...more on tartan to come!

IKEA...Do I have any other option?

I tried to resist. I went to four different furniture stores looking for a new couch, leaving IKEA as a last resort. I'm tired of IKEA. Everyone shops there. All my furniture is from there. But on Monday Bethany and I sat on countless sofas and kept a couple in mind to look at again, but when we got to IKEA we sat on one that trumped them all - the Varnamo. Simple, comfy, and the right price. And lunch for $1.50. Ingvar Kamprad is a genius. To think that he started as a peddler of stationary and panty hose, and now he has millions of people obsessed with furniture that you have to build yourself. 

Bethany is eating an ice cream cone on this couch. We're classy like that.

Kananaskis

I really want to be a poster girl for North Face, so I jumped at the chance to go backpacking with cousin Randy and friends. We hiked over 35 km in two days. Me, two experienced backpackers and a triathlete. I think it's safe to say that the guys had a hard time keeping up with me. My favorite part might have been shopping for my new pack and camping pillow at Mountain Equipment Co-op the night before the hike. I'm just kidding - the hike was challenging and very rewarding, and I'm grateful for family members who are willing to take me into the backcountry of the Rockies.